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DAvID ALTER, or rastrear, PENNSYLVANM, assiettes, To CHARLES WQ BODEY, OF SAME PLAGE.

- Letters Patent No. 62,988, dated ZlIarct 19, 1867.

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TO- ALL WHOM IT MAY CONCERN: i d Be it known that I, DAVID ALTER, of Freeport, in the county of Armstrong, and State of PennsylL Vania, have invented a. new and use ful Improvement in Distillation of Bromine and Iodine; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear', and exact description thereof,iwhich will enable others skilled in the art to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specifica tion, in w`hich i A Figure l is a plan of my improved still. Figure 2 is a sectional elevation of the same, also showing arrangement for distillation. Figure 3 is au en d elevation of the still. Similar letters of reference indicate like parts. n The nature of this invention consists in the use of an alkali to absorb the fumes of bromlneand hydro= t bromic acid which would otherwise escape during the production and distillation of the above-namedisubs'tances. For this purpose I have a stone still, A, made out of a solid block, the top of which is covered byva stone slab, A', well iittedand -luted with a material included in a patent obtained by me. In the sides of the still holes y are cut, through which the lead lluevB, flanged at one end, is passed until the ilange rests llush against the side; t then on the other end a hub vor shorter piece of pipe, C, flanged like the llue B, is slipped' overthe end of the flue B, and the seam closed by stamping or pounding against the ends. Against these vflanges rests an iron ring, D, sharp on its edge, which is held in position and forced up, so as to make atight joint, by means of two or more clamps, E, one end of each resting against the ring, while the other end bears pn a block laid between it andthe still.v Through the middle of this clamp-bar E a bolt, F, passes, which goes through the side of thestone lstill A; the head of the bolt resting against the inside of the stone' still, and the nut being on the outsideI of the clamp-bar E, will allow the whole to be tightened or slackened, as maybe required, and' thus will be enabled to insurea perfectly tight joint for the prevention of leakage of the contents of the still. Into the r" stone still A, tted up as described, hot bittern is run, until only about four inches of space is left between the surface of the liquor and the stone cover A', covering the end of the funnel G, and thus vforming a water or gas lute. Through this funnel the-acid and manganese Iemployed are introduced, and heat applied by means of a movable furnace, which is run up to the still A and connected with the lue by a short pipe.y Bromine and some hydro-bromic acid, with other gases and vapors, are liberated and forced through a lead pipe, E, surrounded with waterythe end ot`-this pipe H dips below the surface vof some water .contained in the glass jar I; the bromne condenses and falls in drops through this water, collecting on the bottom of the jar.` Thus far there is no way provided for the escape of the uncondensed bromine vapors, gases; die., other than by bubbling vup through the water, which would entail a great loss of'bromine from the heat imparted tothe liquid by the passage of such a quantity of gases which still retain some heat, or by making an opening in some partof the pipe and allowing them to pass into the atmosphere and illingit with fumes of such an intolerable odor that. no person could remain near the apparatus. To this condensing pipe H, and at a point just before it leaves the vessel J,'eontaining the water for cooling, a pipe, K, is attached, and is 4made to pass up through the water, thus presenting the gases and vapors still further to the cooling influence of the-surrouudingwater, and carrying any bromine. which condenses back into thema-in pipe II, and will then pass into the jar I provided for its reception, while the gases flow throught-he pipe K, which bends downwards after it leaves the surface'of the ferred for general use only on account of eeonomy--whenthe bromine and hydro-bromic acid combine with the alkali, forming7 in the case of potasse and soda, bromates and bromides, and in the ease of ammonia, as long as in excess, a bromide only, all of which are fixed salts, and can be utilized either in that form, as obtained by crystallization from the liquid or by extraction by liberation with acid and condensation of the vaporsin the .form of bromine; 'and further, for the production of a bromide directly, I substitute a solution of whichever one of the alkalies which I desire to form a bromide for the water in the glass jar I, and allow the bromine to pass into the solution, whereby I obtain, in the case of potassa and soda, a mixed solution of a bromide and brnmatc; and in the case of ammonia in excess a bromide only. From this solutionth'e bromide is separated i water and terminates below thesurface of a solution of potassa, soda, or ammonia in the glass'jar L-soda pre;`

by crystallization. The whole constituting an apparatus so well adapted t0 the peculiar circumstances and actions which occur in this process as enables me, with a Consumption of only one-fourth the amount of Chemicals employed in the European process, to obtain the same quantity of bromine, and with much less labor.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is- The 'use of an alkali to absorb the fumes of bromine and hydro-bromic acid While in process of distillation substantially as herein shown and described.

DAVID ALTER.

Witnesses:

LEVI BUSH, J. C. HILL. 

